Catching a 4lb (2kg) pike on a maggot and a size 20 hook

Just one of the many memorable events on the recent Young Teens ENABLE trip.

As the young people with learning difficulties were a bit younger than our normal groups, we ran a 4-day residential trip rather than our usual 7. Even in this short time, it was amazing to see the difference that was made to these young people, who came on the trip without their parents or carers. A great increase in their independence and self-confidence, with development of their social skills, and improvements in their self-esteem. All of them made significant improvements, as well as having a great time. 4 days on the canal, a swim at Berkhamsted pool, an organised fishing session laid on by Dick and Dave from Tring Anglers and a visit to Sunnyside Rural Trust (including feeding their chickens) added to the stoppages for playing fields made for a very enjoyable trip, as well as the chances for development.

The pike wasn’t the only fish caught. Once he was removed from the scene, fish came thick and fast. Everyone caught several, with one of the young people catching 14 in the 2 hours or so that we had. And they weren’t all small – as well as the pike, there was a decent size bream and some nice roach. In all, 7 species of fish were caught (and the almost inevitable red signal crayfish); perch, chub, bleak and gudgeon along with the pike, roach and bream. Many thanks, Dick and Dave. Getting fishing gear for so many people to us was no mean effort, and you thoroughly earned your fish and chip supper.

Thanks are also due to the fantastic team of volunteers from WEXP that looked after these young people – four of them new to ENABLE, but all rose to the occasion and did an amazing job. Good news for the young people, as it made their trip so worthwhile, and for me as the leader, as a team that pull together make the trip so much better.

The set of pictures that we took on the trip were looked at and discussed at the end, with the young people full of what they’d done and achieved. And it sounded as though the parents had had a good break as well – almost as important as the development of the young people.

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Trips available throughout the winter …

We operate year round - call our friendly booking team on 01923 723819 for information and to arrange your group's great value canal cruise.
Festive cruises during December include complimentary mulled wine and mince pies

What people say about our trips

The whole group went away very impressed with the evening, very keen to come back, thinking of ways to use the boats for other groups and complimenting the skipper and crew on the quality of the experience.

We had a wonderful day - the sunny weather helped! There were 22 of us which was a good number and meant that there was lots of room. It was an extremely relaxing, well organised day. Thank you.

Wonderful day out enjoyed by all. Residents haven't stopped talking about how lovely it was. The crew were so helpful which took away a lot of the usual stresses when arranging a day trip for our residents.

A wonderful day, thoroughly enjoyed by all participants. Not always easy to achieve. As much or as little as one wanted to do. All the extra bits usually missing from self-catering facilities, tea towels, washing up liquid and sponge, salt, pepper etc all present and correct! Amazing! You really can "just bring milk" as suggested.

We all had an amazing day, everyone said how friendly the crew were and how helpful, this made such a difference to the day. When asking the team how they felt they used the words excellent, amazing, perfect and a very special team day out. It was great fun every minute of it.

The party of elderly folk we had on board thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience. Without hesitation I will recommend you to anyone I think will enjoy and benefit from a time on the water. I look forward to another trip!

Very enjoyable - your adaptable and friendly staff made us extremely welcome and were appreciative of the needs of a class of 10 year olds.

A really wonderful experience for us all - beautiful boat, beautiful scenery, beautiful day and a wonderful and fun crew. Thank you all so much.

There was enough room to sit at least eight on the deck and more inside. We bought our own camping chairs but there are some fold up chairs available on board. The boat was wider than we had previously experienced so the younger and older members were able to move about with ease without bumping into each other or having to move out of the way, which was great as we had expected the boat to be 'narrow'. The opportunity to have a take away fish and chips meal brought to the boat was a bonus and meant that I didn't have to do the catering. The meal was also reasonably priced and the serving was huge - even by my family's standards! The trip was very good value for money and I have recommended Waterways Experiences to my friends and would extend the recommendation to anyone reading this review. This was a 50th birthday treat from my mum and aunt and it was exactly how I wanted to spend my birthday.

It was a fantastic experience, the trip was very enjoyable for children and adults alike. It made my daughter's birthday very special.

This was a great family day out and our needs were fully met. We all had the opportunity to work the locks and steer the boat - and if we chose to relax on deck instead, that was fine. The crew were very friendly and it was a delight to be able to include a crew member's dog (our permission had been sought beforehand). This made the trip extra special.

Fantastic day out run by a brilliant company and it’s all for a good cause.

I have already been telling all my friends what a fantastic trip it was and will like the same crew Pete, Graham and Maggie and not forgetting Ruby. The crew are all so friendly and made it even more special We can't thank the crew enough for such a memorable experience!!!!

All our party thoroughly enjoyed themselves. They loved the serenity, calmness, the scenery, the ducks, swans and wildlife.

We really enjoy the boat trips almost as much as the service users! Its not like being at work at all! We recommend wherever we can to fellow groups as the service you offer is so good & excellent value for money.

I was really impressed by the boat, crew and back office. It made the day the best it could have been. The crew was extremely friendly and integrated the guests into enjoying the running of the boat, helping with locks and steering. All in all a very professionally run day and I would not hesitate to book again in the future.

Never been on a canal trip before enjoyed the whole experience and will definitely recommend it. No need to worry about lack of experience everything so well explained.